Jeopardy! Season 32 (2015-2016)

[CarpeDiem54]

Damn! If the middle woman had just been more bold with her wagering with her DD and FJ, Serial Killer would be gone. And the Mad Men lady made me sad. I'm the same age as Sally on MM and that gal sounded like a doddering old woman. Norway? After it was already wrong?

So many TS! Here's just the ones I knew - Hotel California, fire opal, interpretive dance, ballroom dancing, perch, Bob Knight, Iceland and Cannes. I know nothing about Taylor Swift or the White Stripes.

The other champs probably don't want to play against him because he's a jerk. I'd love to see someone mop the floor with him.

[mojoween]

Hotel California! That was the TS I was thinking about.

[CarpeDiem54]

Why does Matt keep gong to the middle of categories? There is little point in getting the DD on the first clue! The most he can wager is $1000.

I think the "DD Hunters" do that so no one else has a shot at them.

[secnarf]

 

When they showed FJ I did the math first, said Indiana Jones immediately, then doubted myself the rest of the time that it came out in 1981.

I did the exact same thing!

 

Who thought we had him in FJ today?

I did when they showed the category, but then I saw the question and though it was way too easy.

The woman on the end wasn't having a good day. She remembered "raiders of the lost ark" but forgot "indiana jones"? And then there was the "Norway" issue.
I really thought the woman in the middle might win. I liked her, too bad she wasn't a bit more aggressive with her wagering.

[dcalley]

Weird! Tater tots was an answer in today's NY Times crossword... clued as "Ore-Ida product", a company name I literally never heard/read before.

I watched a lot TV in the '80s. "When it says Ore-Ida, it's all right-a!"

[backgroundnoise]

I think the show instructs contestants to use the full name the first time a category is called.

I've heard that they ask the contestants to do this, but Matt rarely does.  Another example of rudeness, IMO.   

[Arkay]

I've been a Jeopardy fan since the Art Fleming days, and I also attended a taping of Celebrity Jeopardy at Radio City with Alex Trebek. I am no fan of Trebek because I think he is too oozy-shmoozy, and I just want to see the clues. I admire Matt for his knowledge, of course, but I really enjoy his style of play because I LOVE that he stomps on Trebek's rambling.

I don't think Matt is rude. I think he is just tuned into game mode. I notice that he always applauds his opponents when they land on a DD, and then again if they get it right. However, lately his opponents have not reciprocated. I think THAT is rude.

[Bastet]

I haven't noticed the interrupting being complained about; instead of interrupting - Alex speaking first and Matt deliberately cutting him off - I've simply seen Matt select his next clue immediately, which has sometimes overlapped with Alex saying something.  So I decided to pay close attention tonight (since I rarely notice the contestant quirks talked about here).  Tonight, he didn't even do that, let alone interrupt; Alex frequently got in an aside before Matt selected.  I'll look for it again tomorrow.

[just prin]

See, I see the clapping as "fake." And did long before M. Each to ...etc.

Go Cubs!

Edited October 8, 2015 by just prin

[GreekGeek]

 

Color me bad, sad and a titch sexist when I saw the two competitors were women. And there were no "Woman Only" categories. I think even Matt was disappointed and let his lead drop out of pity. And yeah, I'm a card-carrying NOW member.

 

Maybe everyone was a little tired today?

I was a bit irked by Alex's intro today when he said "Do your best..." It sounded like "You probably don't have a chance, but give it a shot anyhow."

[iwasish]

Oh, shut up Alex. They didn't get Mr Blandings because it was before their time? Its was before my time but I still knew it. Especially since Cary Grant movies are timeless!

"If you ain't eating Wham, you ain't eating ham!!"

[opus]

Go Cubs!

What is, "Off to St. Louis"?

[YoureSoUrban]

I do believe the underlined "Hermann" was an FU, but I don't think it was about the loss of money. I thought it was a geeky "I knew that answer and you made it seem like I didn't -- that cannot happen. I take this very seriously and I expect you to as well, so no more late calls. I see you." And (to me) Alex's reaction read as "We see each other."

 

I don't think Matt's deliberately rude. I think he takes this game super seriously because his intellect is what makes him special. Small talk, smiling etc. and are just distractions from that. My Dad is very similar and I'm admittedly hypersensitive to how uncomfortable he is in situations that aren't centered on intellectual pursuits, and his inability to switch gears accordingly. A couple years ago I got him a "Black Nerds Unite" t-shirt and he still wears it with pride. Maybe Jeopardy is Matt's version of that t-shirt :-)

 

Anyway, beyond my unsolicited and unqualified assessment of Matt's state of mind I've noticed the middle position contestants gaining ground over the past 2 games. Hopefully this trend will continue and we can get back to some real competition!

[mojoween]

I was also surprised Bobby Knight was a TS but I guess I must have overvalued his name to non-sports fans.

[backgroundnoise]

My last flog of this horse.

instead of interrupting - Alex speaking first and Matt deliberately cutting him off - I've simply seen Matt select his next clue immediately, which has sometimes overlapped with Alex saying something.

But Matt shouldn't be selecting his next clue until his prior answer has been given approval.  Part of that involves Alex giving the complete answer or maybe some very short explanation.  It has always been that way, it is part of how the game is constructed.   And overlapping with something someone else is saying at the time is trying to deliberately cut someone off, in my book.

 

I read it as Matt arrogantly thinking his time is too valuable to care about common courtesy.  Very bad manners.   YMMV. 

Edited October 8, 2015 by backgroundnoise

[proserpina65]

I made the mistake of watching last night because apparently I just can't stay away (although I did when Arthur Chu was champ, so I guess he is worse than Matt).  We were so close, sooooooo close!

 

I am quite humiliated to report that I missed FJ, and Raiders is one of my favorite movies (mummy scene notwithstanding).  I just got hung up on the Charlton Heston part of the clue and couldn't figure out what movie he made in 1981.  Should've paid attention to the Inca part and remembered what movies came out that year.  Totally surprised myself that I did the math right.

<hangs head in shame>

Edited October 8, 2015 by proserpina65

[dcalley]

I was also surprised Bobby Knight was a TS but I guess I must have overvalued his name to non-sports fans.

I know very little about basketball, but I know him!

[peeayebee]

I was also surprised Bobby Knight was a TS but I guess I must have overvalued his name to non-sports fans.

I'm a non-sports fan, and I got it. Sounded weird when Alex said "Bob Knight" instead of "Bobby."

 

Now on top of all the other "things" that annoy me, Matt has taken to looking to the heavens to get inspiration for a FJ answer and pretendng to not be sure of the answer.  He actually looked a little worried and my hopes soared for the middle lady.  Not a locked game!  Finally!  He's only one behind Arthur at this point - oh, what will happen....

 

I wonder if he's pausing so as to add drama to the game.

[saber5055]

Why does Matt keep gong to the middle of categories? There is little point in getting the DD on the first clue! The most he can wager is $1000.

 

 

To keep his competitors off-kilter. Board jumping doesn't let someone's brain get into a rhythm or thinking-along-the-same-lines pattern.

Weird! Tater tots was an answer in today's NY Times crossword... clued as "Ore-Ida product", a company name I literally never heard/read before.

 

 

Oh, man, my mom used to make me Tater Tots way back when. I guess you have to be in a certain age group to know Ore-Ida, or have a grandma who tells you stories about "the good old days."

When they showed FJ I did the math first, said Indiana Jones immediately, then doubted myself the rest of the time that it came out in 1981.

 

 

And I was trying to think of the name of John Belusi's character in Animal House. And me, who has seen Raiders more times than any other movie ever. I was thinking Heston was wearing some sort of toga outfit in that Aztec movie that I've never seen.

I was also surprised Bobby Knight was a TS but I guess I must have overvalued his name to non-sports fans.

 

 

Maybe if the clue had included something about chair throwing ...

Edited October 8, 2015 by saber5055

[ChicagoCita]

I enjoyed the sports royalty category and thought it was clever. Of course, it helped that I knew all the answers. ;-)

 

I had been wondering about Matt's ethnicity (I come from a very "United Nations" family - lots of mixed-race and multi-ethnic relatives), so I was glad they asked him about it.  Biracial, for those who didn't watch, with a white Jewish liberal mother and a black Catholic conservative father.

 

I'm curious about people, and hate it when someone has an obvious accent and Alex never asks them where they're from. I like knowing these things. ;-)

[sugarbaker design]

with a white Jewish liberal mother and a black Catholic conservative father.

 

 

Sorry for nitpicking, but I believe he said Christian rather than Catholic.  In any case, must've been an interesting childhood!

[6 MeowMeowBeenz]

It's funny, Matt is quite human in the interviews. But man, when it's go time, he's hyperfocused. 

 

A very interesting family background!

[Roaster]

Movies fans know that Indiana Jones' real first name was Henry.  In FJ Matt should have written: Who is Henry "Indiana" Jones   - with Henry underlined.  Just to make people hate him even more.

[Bastet]

Indiana Jones popped into my head almost immediately, which wouldn't be surprising if I liked the film because there was a lot in the clue to get you there, but I've never even seen it.  (A few minutes here and there on TV, probably, but it has never interested me; it's just not my genre, and I don't particularly care for the performances of Harrison Ford.)  So I guess it's no wonder Matt also got it despite pop culture being a noticeable gap in his knowledge.

 

What is surprising to me is that he doesn't seem to have done much studying of the type of info about sports, movies, music, etc. that tends to come up in J!  If I was going to compete, I'd use the archive to give myself a fighting chance in clues about religion/mythology, opera, military history, etc. -- if a whole category about one of those things comes up, it's just too much money to basically wave away.  Obviously it's not hurting Matt (yet?), but it's noticeable even to me, who hardly notices anything about the contestants.  (They're just a vehicle for the clues, which is all I'm interested in, so they have to be pretty egregious for me to get distracted by them.) 

[saber5055]

I had been wondering about Matt's ethnicity (I come from a very "United Nations" family - lots of mixed-race and multi-ethnic relatives), so I was glad they asked him about it.  Biracial, for those who didn't watch, with a white Jewish liberal mother and a black Catholic conservative father.

 

 

Yes to this! I never gave a thought to Matt's ethnicity, but the question and his reply was very interesting. I especially liked his "... may ... beeee ..." when Trebek asked if his mom was in the audience.

In FJ Matt should have written: Who is Henry "Indiana" Jones   - with Henry underlined.  Just to make people hate him even more.

 

 

Or, more pointedly, as a sign to the judges: "I know what you did last summer."

 

Does anyone remember who Matt beat to become champion? Wasn't there a string of one-hit wonders? And was his first game a runaway? I can't remember that far back. (Or even to yesterday.)

Edited October 8, 2015 by saber5055

[Bastet]

Check the archive for this season.

 

His first victory knocked out returning champion Dylan, who had been a three-day winner (I think a rather underwhelming one, because his total for those three days was about $30k).  Matt beat him by about $4000.

Edited October 8, 2015 by Bastet

[mojoween]

And Matt must have been spoken to after that first game because he was barking out clues and answers so loudly I thought I was going to bust a speaker. He has quieted down a lot since then.

[pandora spocks]

I felt slightly superior that I knew Hotel California.  Hotel California was a must have for any teen in the mid 1970's.  Susan missing this surprised me since she would have been in that demographic.  I had to stay at a physical rehab facility earlier this year.  On the menu was potato gems.  Imagine my disappointment when I was served tater tots.  Eether, either, tomato, tomahto...

[saber5055]

Hey Pandora ... Welcome to Hotel California! That's one of my fav albums, and one band I actually saw in concert.

 

Potato gems. The heck? How disappointing they ended up being tots. But I can see that as a future Jeopardy clue, so thanks for the info.

He has quieted down a lot since then.

 

 

He's also got to be getting tired. I would be!

Edited October 8, 2015 by saber5055

[Trey]

 

n the menu was potato gems.  Imagine my disappointment when I was served tater tots

That is a running joke in  the Trey household - dh goes to the grocery store to buy tater tots and comes home with potato puffs.

 

For FJ, my mind also went first to Animal House and togas but then I got Indiana Jones, music hadn't ended yet but I doubt I would have had time to write it down.

Edited October 8, 2015 by Trey

[just prin]

Hi You'resourban:

Three things:

How dare you leave an "unsolicited and unqualified assessment of Matt's state of mind" on this board, of all places! Can't you see no one here ever does that. And pleasantly, for god's sake!

 

Love your Dad's t!

 

If I see him in the grocery store and giggle a little, do you think he might give me a teeny, Matt smile? I'm a smile person.

 

PS: Forgot to add: Wearing the t-shirt, in the store (cause for the giggle)

Edited October 8, 2015 by just prin

[ChicagoCita]

Sorry for nitpicking, but I believe he said Christian rather than Catholic.  In any case, must've been an interesting childhood!

 

 

Could very well be!  Funny that my memory defaulted "Christian" to "Catholic" when I'm Protestant. ;-)

 

Matt said something nice in the interview portion of Thursday's show about an ideology he learned from Judaism. It made me like that he wanted to stress something sweet and profound. I do like him in the interviews, not so much in the games, but I don't have a red-hot hatred for him, either.

[saber5055]

Funny that my memory defaulted "Christian" to "Catholic" when I'm Protestant.

 

 

Well, they are both "C" words.

Matt said something nice in the interview portion of Thursday's show about an ideology he learned from Judaism. It made me like that he wanted to stress something sweet and profound.

 

 

Yes. I caught that, and I wondered if anyone here would have any flashes of guilt.

[Fex]

I watched a lot TV in the '80s. "When it says Ore-Ida, it's all right-a!"

My mom is kind of a hippy - each kid in my house picked one TV show per week (for a certain period, it was always Ninja Turtles...), so I may not have seen those ads. I did see Jeopardy sometimes. I think maybe it didn't count because it's educational? And NO WAY she would have bought something processed like tater tots. I loved it if I was at someone else's house and they had them!

 

Does Matt look like anyone? He seems familiar, but I can't put my finger it on.

[Roaster]

Today Matt finished Double Jeopardy with over $40K and the thought occurred to me: he should bet it all in FJ and go for the one-day winnings record (which I think is $75K).  He was too conservative for that (I probably would have been, too) but it would have made for a wild ending.

 

(Matt's total to date is $289K, so he's already among the greatest players.  Julia Collins won $428K in twice as many games as Matt has played so far).

[mojoween]

It just started and I am already way over Erik. Let's see how this turns out.

[pandora spocks]

When I saw that Mr. Peabody and Sherman was going to be a Jeopardy category on FB, I had my qualms.  When I heard their voices, I thought WTF?  Then I remembered this wasn't the Mr. Peabody and Sherman that I grew up with.  Sometimes it's a curse being a baby boomer. 

 

Well, thank God somebody knew who the Brady Bunch was!  The contestant was young so it was obviously before his time. Interesting insight:  I was born in 1957 but I know about Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Harold Lloyd--well before my time.

[dcalley]

When I saw that Mr. Peabody and Sherman was going to be a Jeopardy category on FB, I had my qualms.  When I heard their voices, I thought WTF?  Then I remembered this wasn't the Mr. Peabody and Sherman that I grew up with.  Sometimes it's a curse being a baby boomer.

I am a Gen Xer and grew up with it, too.

[mojoween]

I wonder which alphabet Alex thought was the easier one? Because I immediately said Cyrillic but couldn't think of the other one and then when Erik's correct answer was revealed I was like oh duh, but Matt didn't get it either.

Jackie Kennedy was a silly DD.

[Roaster]

From http://stuarte.co/2014/jeopardy-champions-list/and http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/ken-jenningss-jeopardy-

streak-is-safe-for-the-rest-of-time/ and elsewhere

 

Top Jeopardy Earnings (Total Winnings) in Regular Play
Ken Jennings  $ 2,520,700, 74 consecutive wins
Dave Madden  $ 430,400, 19 consecutive wins
Julia Collins  $ 428,100, 20 consecutive wins
Arthur Chu  $ 298,200, 11 consecutive wins
Tom Nissley  $ 235,405, 8 consecutive wins
Roger Craig  $ 230,200, 6 consecutive wins
Larissa Kelly  $ 223,597, 6 consecutive wins
Jason Keller  $ 213,900, 9 consecutive wins
Joon Pahk  $ 199,000, 7 consecutive wins
Tom Walsh  $ 184,900, 7 consecutive wins
Ben Ingram  $ 176,534, 8 consecutive wins

 

From memory, I think we now have

Matt Jackson    $ 289,000 (about), 10 consecutive wins and counting

 

The blog FiveThirtyEight has a chart showing percentage of "lock games" of those who have won at least 8 in a row.

http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/ken-jenningss-jeopardy-streak-is-safe-for-the-rest-of-time/

 

Ken Jennings - 87% lock games, 74 consecutive wins
Julia Collins - 57% lock games, 20 consecutive
David Madden - 50% lock games, 19 consecutive
Arthur Chu - 58% lock games, 11 consecutive
Jason Keller - 30% lock games, 9 consecutive
Dan Pawson - 30% lock games, 9 consecutive
Tim Nissely- 11% lock games, 8 consecutive
Ben Ingram - 22% lock games, 8 consecutive
Tom Kavannaush - 33% lock games, 8 consecutive
Drew Horwood - 11% lock games, 8 consecutive

 

If memory serves, we are now at
Matt Jackson - 90% lock games, 10 consecutive wins so far

 

Is my memory right?  What they are calling "lock" games are what are also called runaways and I think Matt has only been

in one game that was not a runaway.

 

Impressive, no matter how creepy Matt may be.

[Tunia]

"UNCLE!"  Yup, even I was rooting for Matt today because Erik In The Middle...ummmm - no.

[dcalley]

@Roaster, 2/10 were not runaways.

[Bastet]

What they are calling "lock" games are what are also called runaways and I think Matt has only been in one game that was not a runaway.

 

Two (as of yesterday; I haven't seen today's) -- last night, and then one in the middle (his fifth game, if I'm remembering right from looking at the archive this morning).

Edited October 9, 2015 by Bastet

[YoureSoUrban]

 

 

Love your Dad's t!

If I see him in the grocery store and giggle a little, do you think he might give me a teeny, Matt smile? I'm a smile person.

PS: Forgot to add: Wearing the t-shirt, in the store (cause for the giggle)

Nope, not even a teeny one :-) But if you're in the St. Louis area you may very well see him because he's at the grocery store every day!

 

 

Matt said something nice in the interview portion of Thursday's show about an ideology he learned from Judaism. It made me like that he wanted to stress something sweet and profound.

That was a lovely expression, wasn't it? I love learning things like that.

 

I thought Matt might get dinged for not saying Jackie Kennedy ONASSIS. 

 

I wonder why Alex said "We'll accept that." for Matt's DD answer of the Nina? It's the only one of the 3 ships with 4 letters...

[GreekGeek]

Patricia Heaton was a TS! I guess none of the guys watch The Middle. There was another Mom (I think) clue that I thought was easy--it was a low dollar value--but nobody even tried it.

 

As for FJ, I'm guessing Alex thought the Cyrillic alphabet was the "difficult" one (although the mention of Bulgaria was a huge hint) because Greece and its place in the EU have been in the news so much. But what was that comment he made about Matt's wager--"He didn't lose much, I'm afraid"???

 

I'm not sure why the Erik dislike.

Edited October 9, 2015 by GreekGeek

[Tunia]

There was another Mom (I think) clue that I thought was easy--it was a low dollar value--but nobody even tried it.

 

Debbie Reynolds on Will & Grace.

Edited October 9, 2015 by Tunia

[dcalley]

I wonder why Alex said "We'll accept that." for Matt's DD answer of the Nina? It's the only one of the 3 ships with 4 letters...

Nina vs. Niña, maybe?

[CarpeDiem54]

Patricia Heating (I've never watched The Middle) and Debbie Reynolds TS were surprising.

Hopefully, on Monday, The Serial Killer will take off a shoe to hold up eleven, fall over and knock himself out.

Cyrillic came to me instantly. It took me a minute to come up with Greek. WTH is Turkic?

[Bastet]

Since the camera holds on each contestant long enough to give their name, occupation and city, and in the case of the returning champ also their X-day total winnings, Matt will have plenty of time to flash ten fingers and then one, so I'm assuming that's what he'll do if he wins eleven games.  But I admit I'm curious, and will make sure to tune in early to find out (I often don't turn it on until about a minute in, skipping the contestant intros and Alex's opening remark).

 

(At eight, I thought of the Seinfeld episode where Kramer accidentally flashes the gang sign for The Van Buren Boys by holding up eight fingers.)

[secnarf]

Cyrillic came to me instantly. It took me a minute to come up with Greek. WTH is Turkic?

I had the exact same thought process, so I googld Turkic alphabet: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Turkic_Alphabet

I don't think it counts as separate though since it's based on the Latin alphabet.